Destiny of the Roses
by morphius
Summary: A teenager named Kiera is transported back in time and asked to aid in the battle between the houses of Lancaster and York. PG13 to be safe. Based on Duelist of the Roses.
1. Prolouge: How it all began

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-gi-oh or Duelist of the Roses. Kiera and various other folks however, are mine.   
  
Summary: An cynical, sarcastic, and anti-social girl named Kiera Blackthourne (pronounced Key-air-uh Black-thorn) is transported back in time and is asked to aid in the vicious battle between the houses Lancaster and York. What side will she choose and what sort of adventure will arise? Based on Duelist of the Roses.   
  
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Prologue: How it All Began   
  
"Class, this is Kiera Blackthourne," announced Mrs. White to the other 10th graders in room 834, referring to the girl with long brown hair and hazel eyes standing next to her. The girl was dressed in all black and didn't look too friendly. "She's just moved to Hillcrest from London. Kiera, take a seat at that empty desk. . . Jonathan, wake up!" A short boy with short brown hair bolted awake, causing the class to snicker loudly.  
  
"Huh? What?" John asked sleepily. Kiera took her seat and glared at the boy with the utmost contempt. "Moron," she muttered darkly, taking out a book and starting to read. No one heard her and Mrs. White went back to teaching the class about elimination, or some other math nonsense. As she did, John tapped the new student on the shoulder. Kiera ignored him.   
  
"Hey. Who're you?" he asked. Then Robert, John's friend who sat right in front of Kiera, turned around.   
  
"You're from England, huh? Jolly good day, milady. wouldst thou like a spot of tea?" Robert asked in a exaggerated British accent. John began laughing so hard that he couldn't breathe, choked up in silent mirth.   
  
"Fuck off," Kiera said coldly, without even the slightest hint of a British accent. Shocked, the two boys stopped laughing and stared at the girl as if she'd grown a second head.   
  
"Wait a minute. Teach said you were from England! Liar." Robert stated, turning his back on the deceitful exchange student. Wondering why they didn't notice her cursing them off, Kiera shrugged and returned to her book. She could tell them that she was born in London, moved to New York when she was five, then returned to England last year before moving to the pathetic suburb known as Hillcrest, but why bother? The fewer of these incompetent fools she was forced to interact with, the better. After only a few minutes of reading, she was interrupted a second time by the girl sitting beside her.   
  
"Hey! I'm Liz! It's nice to meet you and stuff," the girl with brown hair pulled back in a ponytail blurted out at incredible speed.   
  
Kiera ignored her. Oblivious to this indication that the new student wished to be left alone, Liz once again tried to strike up a conversation.   
  
"What'cha reading?" Liz asked, now loudly chewing gum which, if possible, made her even more annoying.  
  
"Lord of the Rings," Kiera snapped.   
  
"Oh my god! I saw the movie! It was SO good! You should see it sometime," Liz blabbed on and on. Kiera was beginning to grow tired of this conversation. If only she had a flamethrower . . . the push of a button, and this preppy bitch would roast. Now THAT would be awesome.   
  
" Liz! Kiera! Pay attention!"   
  
"Huh?" Kiera mumbled, her fantasy cut short by the teacher telling her pay attention. The class snickered loudly.  
  
"And put that book away! This is Algebra, not English!" Groaning, she complied with the teacher's request and crammed the book into her backpack. After ten more minutes of agony, the bell rang, signaling the end of 1st period. Kiera walked out the door. But instead of turning left towards her 2nd period class, she went right and out the door into the parking lot.   
  
"There's no way I can handle nine more classes with these idiots," she muttered, walking off in the direction of the public library.   
  
End Prologue  
  
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So what'd ya think? If you like it, REVIEW! If you thought it sucked, REVIEW! If you wanna borrow money, DON'T BOTHER! Because if I had any money, I'd have spent it already. Later! 


	2. Chapter One: Fate Intervenes

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-gi-oh or Duelist of the Roses. Kiera and various other folks however, are mine. 

Summary: An cynical, sarcastic, and anti-social teenager named Kiera Blackthourne (pronounced Key-air-uh Black-thorn) is transported back in time and is asked to aid in the vicious battle between the houses Lancaster and York. What side will she choose and what sort of adventures will arise? Based on Duelist of the Roses. 

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Chapter One: Fate Intervenes 

It was about a forty-five minute walk from the library, and once Kiera got there, she was exhausted. After hanging up her black windbreaker on the coat rack, she stepped inside. The library was almost empty, except for the librarians and a man reading a newspaper. She went to her favorite section, Medieval History and searched desperately for a book she hadn't read yet. The selection was limited, and in the week she had been here, Kiera had read all ten Medieval History books. A librarian noticed her scanning the shelves and walked over to her. 

"Excuse me, miss. Is there something I can help you with?" she asked sweetly. 

"Yeah, get some decent books here. Your selection sucks," Kiera muttered. "I'm outta here." She was about to leave when. . . 

"If you're referring to Medieval History, we do have another book that we just got in." the librarian added. Kiera turned on her heel and stared thoughtfully at the librarian, who went behind her desk and pulled out an old worn book called 'War of the Roses'. "This is a really good one. I've read it three times myself." Kiera grabbed the book and left. 

"You have to. . . check that out." the librarian finished as the door closed. 

Kiera kept walking. Sure she had just stolen a book from a friendly old librarian, but she'd make sure to return it. Eventually. Once she got to the park, which was also pretty much deserted, she opened up the book and began to read. The first page read, in fancy gold lettering, 

_A card! A card! My kingdom for a card!_

Curious as to what cards had to do with the War of the Roses, her favorite war of them all, she flicked through the pages finally getting to the first page of the story and read… 

_The British Empire in the 1480's. . . the War of the Roses . . . a power struggle between the houses of Lancaster (red rose) and York (white rose), was nearing an end. With the Yorkists well in the lead, the reign of King Richard III was but a step away. And in France, Henry Tudor was being forced to live a life of exile._

"What the HELL?" Kiera yelled, startling a passing jogger. She looked again at the portrait of Henry Tudor in the book. Instead of the usual old white guy portrait they had for Henry, they had the picture of a young man with tri-color hair spiked as if it had been electrocuted. This guy looked more like someone sighted at a club or a rave than an English nobleman. Shrugging, she ignored the freaky picture and kept reading. 

_The Lancastrian forces were rendered powerless by ancient cards of sorcery wielded by Rosenkreuz and his seven followers known as the "Rose Crusaders" , served under the flag of Lord Crawford, a powerful Yorkist nobleman._

'Ancient cards of sorcery? Bullshit.' Kiera thought. 'This is more like fiction based on real events, and loosely based at that. What was this doing in a History section? Whatever. I got nothing better to do.' The next few words would change her life forever. 

_Lacking a duelist to champion their cause, defeat was imminent for the Lancastrians. In England, dueling games were at their fledgling stage. Thus, the Lancastrians had to look elsewhere for a duel master capable of facing Rosenkreuz in battle. With this in mind, Margaret Mai Beaufort secretly requested a High Druid to summon a duelist from another age. . . _

Kiera's reading was interrupted when the ground began shaking. "What the fuck is going on?" she mumbled as the earth dissolved beneath her feet. Falling into purplish-black darkness, a light flashed brightly and Kiera passed out. Some time later, she found herself lying flat on her back. The grass beneath her felt damp, like it had just rained. Impossible, it hadn't rained in three weeks. 'Where the hell am I?' She finally decided to open her eyes. It was dark out, which was strange since it was 10:00 AM according to her watch . She looked around and saw a little man in yellow robes dancing around, yelling like crazy. 

"Oooooooooh! . . . summon from the mystic circle of red and white roses, the one capable of harnessing pure power. . . There was truth to the legend of the Rose Duelist! Lady Margaret! I . . . did it! Now we have the means to defeat Rosenkreuz!" The tiny man suddenly stopped and noticed that Kiera was now conscious. "Oh. . . My apologies. In my excitement, I'd forgotten I was in the presence of the Rose Duelist!" 

"The WHAT? Who the hell are you? And what am I doing here?" Kiera asked, rather agitated . 

"Allow me to introduce myself." the man spoke with a Scottish accent. " My name is Simon McMooran, High Druid and servant of Lancaster. May I be so bold as to ask the name by which the duelist would like to be known?" 

"Kiera," the irked teenager snapped at him. "My patience grows thin and you've yet to tell me why I'm here." 

"Kiera! What a fine name indeed!" Simon declared. "Now here's the situation. The year is currently 1481* and you are currently in Stonehenge, near Salisbury, England. The British Empire is in turmoil, and the house of Lancaster's rightful claim to the throne was being challenged by the Yorkist usurpers. The power struggle is referred to as the War of the Roses, which . . ." 

"I know about the War of the Roses, old man. Probably more so than you do," Kiera replied angrily. "Because technically, the houses of Lancaster and York have equal right to the throne since both heirs are relatives of Edward IV. So they're really not usurpers." Simon glared from beneath his hood and continued. 

"Since you know so much about this," he stated, with a hint of bitterness, but quickly regaining his usual amiable tone, " I shall skip straight to the point. Using the Red Rose cards, we summoned you, Lady Kiera, to this day and age. We hoped your dueling experience would defeat the Rose Crusaders and lead us to victory!" 

"But. . ." Kiera began. 

"You will help us?" he asked anxiously. "Of course you will! Foolish of me to even doubt where your loyalties lie. . . Rumor has it that only the legendary Rose Duelist has a chance against the power of Rosenkreuz." 

"Would you let me talk? I'm tryin' to say something here!" Kiera yelled, causing the puny man to jump. "I'm just some teenager and a bad Duel Monsters player at that. How the fuck do ya expect me to defeat this Rosenkreuz guy?" 

"We appreciate any help you can provide against them," Simon explained, "Which is plenty, considering you are the one destined to save us. But before I forget, I should warn you that the rules to dueling differ here from those of your age. 

"Whatever," Kiera muttered, removing her deck from her pocket and shuffling it. 

"The first rule is that you must choose a deck leader," Simon began. 

"Ahhh. . ." Kiera mumbled. She remember this rule from the Noah Arc of Yu-gi-oh, her favorite anime. After much searching, she finally found the card, Neo the Magic Swordsman. He had always been her favorite. Simon began chanting and suddenly, Neo appeared at Kiera's side, causing her to flinch before quickly regaining her composure. 

"Cool. . ." 

"I'm glad you approve, milady," Simon beamed. "Now then, the second rule is. . ." 

"Hmmm. So that is the effect of the Celtic rose cards. It appears there was some truth to the rumor that Red rose cards are capable of time transformation," said an unknown voice. 

"Who's there?" Simon demanded of the intruder. Kiera looked around and saw no one, the fog was too thick. 

"It's been a long time since the battle of Barnet, old one." The intruder stepped out of the mist, showing himself to be a young man with brown hair and piercing blue eyes. He wore armor emblazoned with the Blue Eyes White Dragon. 

"Seto!" Simon barked at the trespasser. "What brings you here?" 

'Holy crap! Kaiba? I think I'm losing my mind!' Kiera thought. ' And that picture of Henry Tudor kinda reminded me of . . . Don't be ridiculous! It's just my imagination.' 

"Only a member of the Rose Crusaders may call me by that name," Seto stated coldly. "If you may recall, I told you once before that you may only address me as Rosenkreuz**. Or does memory fail you, old man?" He snickered at Simon's rage before turning to Kiera. "And you. . . You must be the dreaded Rose Duelist. I must admit there's a certain aura of power emanating from you. I believe an introduction is in order. I am C. Rosenkreuz, leader of the Rose Crusaders. There are members of our little group who prefer to call me by my true name, Seto. And you are?" 

"Kiera Blackthourne," she replied. 

"A pleasure to meet you," he said, kissing her hand. Uncharacteristically, Kiera blushed a little. Meanwhile, Simon fumed. The Rose Duelist, and the savior of the Lancastrians, was being hit on by the ENEMY! 

"I ask you again. . . what brings you here, Rosenkreuz?" 

Seto released her hand and glared at his adversary. "Mind your manners, old man! What else would bring me here. . . I've come for the Red Rose cards! After all, it was you who showed me how the summoning capabilities would evolve when combined with the time transport abilities of the White rose cards. . ." Simon's eyes widened in fear. 

"You aren't thinking of attempting the forbidden 'Rose summoning'. . . if so, then the Red Rose cards must never fall into your evil hands! Card sorcery taps into the powers of the Ancient Ones. . . By their very nature, each card is a double-edged sword that can cut both ways. . ." 

"Thank you, oh great Captain Obvious, for enlightening us to the fact that a sword with TWO edges can cut in TWO directions," Kiera snapped. In the background, Seto snickered, hastily disguising as a cough. 

"But. . ." Simon sputtered. 

"Look Simon McMoron," Kiera interrupted. 

"McMooran!" Simon stated indignantly as Seto tried in vain to keep from laughing. 

"Whatever, McMoron. Do me a favor and cut the crap. I haven't got all day to stand around and listen to you two debate this. Look, Rosenkreuz wants the 8 Red Rose cards. If you're gonna give 'em to him, then go ahead and do it. If not, then just say so and we'll get on with the war." 

"But he has no choice," Seto claimed, regaining his composure. "He was clever enough to form a circle of red roses within the white rose barrier to summon you. But . . . He was foolish enough to come alone. This area is surrounded and if you wish to leave with you life, you will do so only by handing over the Red Rose cards. . ." Kiera and Simon looked around and saw that he spoke the truth. 

Simon laughed. "Me a fool. . . ? Then what about you? Are you fool enough to believe that the Red Rose cards would remain here in my possession. Right after the summoning, I had the cards dispersed amongst our best duelists to keep them from your tainted hands! 

"Then you leave me but one option. . . I shall enlist the aid of your precious Rose Duelist!" Seto declared. 

"You take leave of your senses!" Simon announced. 

"And you speak too soon, old man!" Seto retorted. "Heed my words, Kiera! If you wish to return to your proper time period, you will require 16 cards of the Red and White roses. . . The red and white summoning positions must be laid in reverse in order to send you home." 

"You know the spell?" the druid asked, eyes widening. 

Rather than respond, Rosenkreuz ignored him and continued, "Since you need the 16 Rose cards as much as we do. . . I propose a partnership. Help us gather the cards and I shall guarantee your return after we've achieved our ultimate goal! 

"That's absurd!" Simon declared, "Do you think the honorable Kiera would even lend an ear to your ridiculous proposal?" 

"Can you be so sure old man?" Seto retorted. Simon glanced over to the Rose Duelist and wondered if he really could trust her. 

"Now let me see here. . . " Rosenkreuz began, " Simon's side- the Lancastrians- has the eight Red Rose cards, while my side - the Rose Crusaders- possesses the eight White Rose cards. Simple arithmetic indicates that you could side with either of us. But I'm sure you'll take into account who's winning this war. After all, who was desperate enough to summon you in the first place. I think it's quite clear which side is better prepared to send you home. . ." 

Simon, already uptight, was now frantic. Though he hated to admit it, Seto had a good point. His side was winning, and this could compel the young duelist into allying with the Yorkists. 

"K-Kiera! Heed not the words of this. . . this power-hungry lunatic! 

"Simon! Must you resort to name-calling? I'm hurt," Seto replied sarcastically, "I'll tell you what. Why don't we leave this decision to our dear Duelist? After all, her future is not for us to decide, now is it?" Simon gave no response. "Splendid!" the knight declared, flourishing two roses that Simon used in his spell. " In keeping with the traditions of the Old Temple gardens, I offer you a choice. Here are two roses. The white represents me, and the red for old Simon here." 

"For the sake of justice, select the red rose!" Simon pleaded. 

"Stand by my side, Kiera. . . Choose the white rose." Seto offered calmly. 

Kiera stood there, eyes shifting back and forth, from red to white. Five minutes passed and she hadn't made up her mind. Occasionally, her hand would creep close to one of the roses before she pulled it back. 

"I don't know." Kiera let out a fake sigh. " It's just SO hard to pick." 

Simon was sweating profusely. If the savior of his people elected to side with Rosenkreuz and the Yorkists, all would be lost. Seto, however, stood there relaxed as anything. He didn't really care what Kiera chose. If she chose Simon, fine. He would move on and still defeat the Lancastrians nonetheless. Still, having her on his side would make things a lot easier. . . 

"You just can't be scared, huh?" the duelist in question asked, jolting him from his thoughts. "Fine, I've made my choice." And she grabbed the white rose from Seto's hand, so hard that she cut herself on the thorns. Seto smirked and threw the Red Rose to the ground and crushed it beneath his boot. 

"A wise choice! I see you are well versed in judging a situation. Welcome to the Rose Crusaders! I. . . am honored." Seto stated, bowing. "Ok, old man. It's time you made yourself scarce." 

"What? What are you doing . . . Stop! Noooo!" Simon yelled as he faded away. 

"Don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you. I just need you out of the way until everything is settled." Seto stated. He then turned to the Rose Duelist, who's eyes were wide. 

"Whoa! You gotta teach me how to do that!" Kiera exclaimed. 

"In due time, milady. In due time. But first, we must return to the castle. There we shall get into further detail of your mission," he explained. Seto led her over to a carriage. It was silver and pulled by four white horses. They stepped inside and they rode off to Bostwick, to the castle of Richard of York. 

End Chapter One 

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* The game says 1485, but I changed it since the War of the Roses ends in 1485 with the death of King Richard III, who became king in 1483. So in 1485, a fight over the throne would be simply the Lancastrians trying to overthrow Richard and not both sides fighting over who was to be king, as the game says. 

** I kinda took this idea from ShadowFox2 (much thanks to her for inspiring me). She felt, and I agreed, that it was dumb for a person to allow his enemies to call him by his first name, while his own followers called him by his last name. 

I'm _really_ picky, aren't I? Please review and I'll keep writing. Later! 


	3. Chapter Two: Meet Richard of York

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-gi-oh or Duelist of the Roses. Kiera and various other folks however, are mine. 

Summary: An cynical, sarcastic, and anti-social teenager named Kiera Blackthourne (pronounced Key-air-uh Black-thorn) is transported back in time and is asked to aid in the vicious battle between the houses Lancaster and York. What side will she choose and what sort of adventures will arise? Based on Duelist of the Roses. 

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AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'm so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so freaking SORRY! It's been like a month since I updated, due to the fact my computer hath fried and I have to work on a computer that I have access to for like an hour on weekends. This is pretty much my first fic and I _never_ knew how long it takes to think up new ideas. If you wrote a story on my favorites list, I apologize EXTRA MUCH for yelling/damning/threatening you for not updating. Can you say extra much? I dunno. Oh well. Here's the fic! 

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Chapter Two: Meet Richard of York 

By the time Seto and Kiera had reached the castle, the sun was just starting to rise. After Seto finally got Kiera to wake up, they went inside to find Lord Crawford, Bones, Panik, Weevil, Rex, Para/Dox, Keith, and Ishizu sitting at a table in an elegant dining hall. Sitting in a throne facing the table was Richard of York 

"Ah. Lord Seto, you've returned," Richard greeted, getting up from his chair. "And who is this young lady?" 

"This is the Rose Duelist, Kiera Blackthourne," Seto gestured towards Kiera, who was practically asleep on her feet. Irritated, he nudged her in the ribs. 

"Huh?" Kiera mumbled, now partially awake. "Were you saying something? 

Everyone snickered and Seto whispered in her ear, "You're making me look bad." 

"Sorry. Won't happen again," Kiera whispered back. "Who the hell are these people?" 

"These are the Rose Crusaders," Seto replied. Kiera looked around in shock. Each person looked _identical_ to someone from Yu-gi-oh. 

"The Rose Duelist?" Richard repeated as whispers spread through the room like wildfire. 

"She's a spy for the Lancastrians! Kill her!" roared a knight with blond hair tied back with a bandanna. He got up from his seat and drew his sword. 

"Sir Keith! Restrain yourself!" Lord Crawford ordered before turning to Kiera. " I apologize for my presumptuous friend here. He's. . ." 

"Very, very, very drunk?" she finished for him. He nodded solemnly. 

"I AM NOT DRUNK!!" Keith screamed at them. 

"Oh, so you're just stupid?" Kiera asked mockingly. 

Keith was now shaking with rage and his fellow Rose Crusaders were laughing uproariously. He was about to get up and make this punk regret ever messing with Sir Keith, but Ishizu put a hand on his shoulder and pushed him back into his seat. 

"I swear I'm gonna kill that brat." Keith grumbled. 

"Try it and you shall pay, Keith!" Seto yelled before he knew what he was saying. Everyone in the room turned to face him. 

"What?" Seto snapped at them. 

"Lord Seto!" Richard barked, getting them back on track. "I wish to know how your mission to obtain the eight Red Rose Cards went." 

"Well, I confronted McMoron. . . " Seto began. 

"Who?" Richard asked. The Rose Crusaders burst out laughing and Seto blushed in embarrassment. 

"McMooran," Seto corrected himself, while glaring at the Rose Duelist, who was still laughing. 

"What?" Kiera asked innocently. Seto continued to glare, but said nothing. 

"McMoron, huh? I like it," Richard stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Continue." 

"He, however, did not have them. He told me he had split them up to keep us from obtaining them, and that using the Rose Duelist, he would defeat us." Richard looked at the Rose Duelist warily. 

"I see. Now young lady. . . " the nobleman began. 

"Kiera," the teenager snapped. "I have a name. Use it." 

Whispers once again spread throughout the room. This child had the nerve to disrespect the future king? All of Richard's followers were expected to treat him with the esteem deserving to a man of his social status. And the Rose Duelist was no exception. . . 

" Such insolence." Ishizu muttered angrily. 

"How dare you insult your King, insolent wench!" Keith yelled, once again drawing the sword. 

"Tsk-tsk. _Future king_, Keith." Kiera corrected, shaking a finger at the belligerent knight. "I mean, how stupid can you be?" This was pathetic! Here Kiera was in the 1480's, and she knew more about current events than they did! Keith was still seething at her last comment, but managed to restrain himself from killing her. Lord Crawford laughed, amused at how this 15-year-old girl was messing with the more simple-minded of the Rose Crusaders. 

"My, my Kiera, you are quite the audacious character!" Lord Crawford chuckled. "And an oddly dressed one too," he added, eyeing her black windbreaker and nylon pants. 

"You're one to talk about dressing oddly," Kiera retorted, regarding his red suit with a frilly collar and sleeves. 

"Kiera!" Richard roared, startling said teenager. "If you are done slinging insults at my followers, _perhaps_ we can get down to business." 

"All right, _sire_," Kiera replied bitterly. She sat down in a chair next to Lord Crawford, putting her feet up on the table. "You have my undivided attention. So tell me, what do I have to do?" 

"Defeat the Lancastrians," Richard answered. Kiera snickered. 

"Come now, my liege," Kiera said, "That's the kind of unsophisticated answer I'd expect from Keith." 

"Finally, some respect," Keith grumbled. 

"That was an insult, fool," she told him. He snarled a lot and grabbed at his sword, but a glare from Richard shut him up. The nobleman proceeded to chuckle a bit before turning to Kiera. 

"That _is_ your duty, Kiera. To defeat the Lancastrians," Richard replied. Kiera's jaw dropped. 

"What the hell? Isn't the 'conquest of a rival noble family' thing more of the army's job?" Kiera asked. 

"In most cases, yes." Richard replied. "However, this is a very different kind of war. Let me tell you about the Red Rose Cards. . ." 

"Is this gonna be long and boring?" Kiera inquired. 

"But of course. Now then. . . Seto said that the Red Rose Cards have been dispersed amongst certain individuals. I think it's safe to assume that a large number of those individuals are his confederates currently located in France. I would like to ask you to enter France from Dover and retrieve these cards for our cause. . ." 

"Milord! How can we possible send her out to defeat the Lancastrians single-handedly?" Seto asked, anxiety and fury in his voice. Everyone stared at him. Yet again. 

"I'd prefer not to do things this way, Seto. However, I need you here in the likely event that the Lancastrians attempt to invade," Richard explained. He then turned to the Rose Duelist, who was tapping her foot impatiently. "Sorry to keep you waiting. Now then, I've heard that the Celts inherited their Red Rose Cards from the original inhabitants of Stonehenge. This would mean our enemy, Yugi, who comes from a long line of Welsh nobility would likely possess one of the Red Rose Cards." Kiera face faulted. Richard of York, an English nobleman, did _not_ just mention Yugi, a character from a _Japanese_ cartoon that wouldn't exist for another 500 years. She then realized she had zoned out and Richard was staring at her. 

"Continue," Kiera stated, twiddling with a silver fork. 

"What this means is those who oppose the Rose Crusaders are sufficiently equipped to duel us as equals. And given their desperate situation, they will retaliate with everything they have. It would be wise not to underestimate them. I'm counting on you. . ." 

"All right. So when do I start?" Kiera asked. 

"Wait a minute!" Keith interrupted. "How do we know that she's the one? The only thing we have to go on is her word!" 

"The 'one'? The Matrix people could be suing your ass right now," Kiera stated, getting many weird looks. She then realized that this was 500+ years in the past and no one had heard of the Matrix. 

"I say we test to see if this brat's any good!" Keith roared. The others nodded, since they _did_ have their doubts about the tactless adolescent. 

"I'm sure Kiera will have no qualms about it," Richard looked at her for an answer. 

"All right. I hoped for more of a challenge, but why not?" Kiera sneered. But in spite of her cocky demeanor, deep down, she was quite nervous. In England, her friend Remus had taught her the basics of dueling, but not enough to take on one of the Rose Crusaders. And if she were defeated. . . Kiera had done much reading on medieval torture and never wished to experience any of it. Then something hit her. She knew _all_ of Keith's tricks and stunts. Kiera had seen every episode at least three times due to 4Kids slowness at dubbing. Feeling a little calmer, she glared at Keith, who flinched at first, then glared right back. 

"Then we shall go out back and witness the power of the Rose Duelist!" Richard roared. The other Rose Crusaders cheered and Kiera followed Richard outside, mentally wishing he would stop hyping her so-called 'power'. 

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You like? Sorry if it was short. I wanted to post something before 2004 and going into detail about their duel would have taken _way_ too long. So review and at least try to forgive me for making ya wait so long. Ciao! 


	4. Chapter Three: Proving One's Worth

Author's Note: I apologize for the delay. Until recently, I haven't had a computer and kept this fic on a disk so I could type the story on different computers. But then I lost the disk for a week! Then found it again. Well, enough of that,here's Chapter 3! 

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Chapter Three: Proving One's Worth 

Richard led her to what would be the dueling arena, a gigantic wasteland field. In the middle of it was a small lake. 

"Oy! Richie!" Kiera nudged the nobleman in the ribs. "What's up with the pond in the middle of a dump?" 

The future king contemplated his new nickname, deemed it satisfactory, then turned to the young duelist. "It's a bit of a 'handicap' for Keith. The wasteland increases the power of his machine monsters, while the water diminishes it." 

"My lord," Seto was jogging to catch up with Richard's swift strides. "Must we use _this_ field? It gives Keith an enormous advantage, to the point where he could actually. . . win." 

"Seto," Richard flashed a knowing smile, "I am well aware of this. And that's exactly the point. If we held the duel on a normal field, that would make things too easy. If this girl is to become a Rose Crusader, then she must be able to overcome whatever the enemy throws at her." He turned to Kiera. "That and if you positively _massacre_ Keith, then maybe you can earn some respect from the others." He jerked his head in the direction of the other Rose Crusaders, who were whispering to each other and glaring at Kiera. 

"I feel no need to earn the respect of those fools," she told him bluntly. "But publicly humiliating Keith would be fun. She pulled out her deck and shuffled through it. Damn. Mostly spellcasters. Her deck, strong as it was, may have difficulties against the sheer offensive strength of Keith's machines. 'Did they even _have_ machines in this day and age?' Kiera thought to herself. She chuckled at the thought of being attacked by a wooden horse and buggy, but managed to focus on the task at hand. 

"Hey Richie. Could I have a few minutes to change around my deck a bit?" Kiera asked in a way completely devoid of sarcasm, except for the fact she called an English lord 'Richie'. 

"Certainly." 

She reached into another pocket for her cards, but her hand found nothing but air. "Fuck!" Kiera swore under her breath. Her other cards were in her backpack, which had been left at. . . Stonehenge. 

"Is something the matter, Lady Kiera?" Seto asked. 

"Yeah. My cards were in my bag, which is at Stonehenge, miles away from. . ." She stopped her tirade and stared as Seto ran off to the castle. When he returned with her bag, Kiera was at a loss for words. 

"But. . . Bag. . . You. . . Stonehenge. . . " Kiera sputtered incoherently. 

"Actually, I picked it up before we left. I was going to give it to you sooner, but . . ." 

"It's all good. Thanks." She grabbed her bag, and dug a pile of cards out of the front pocket. After a few minutes of switching cards from her deck, the 'crowd', if it could be called that, being only about seven or so people, began to get restless. 

"Hurry up!" Panik bellowed. "I didn't come here to watch some little urchin shuffle cards." Kiera glared at him and he started trembling. 

"All right, all right. I'm done," Kiera stated, taking her place on a raised platform across the field from Keith. A panel in front of the pedestal was a board, similar to a chess board, but only 7x7and the squares were rectangles. 

"Allow me to start things off," Keith declared. 

"Ladies first, I suppose," Kiera retorted. Seto and Richard snickered. Keith didn't get it. The Rose Crusaders were getting irritated. 

"Can _someone_ get this brat to stop shooting her mouth off?" Rex asked. "I came to see Duel Monsters, not a battle of wits!" 

"A battle of wits? I wouldn't mind that." Kiera commented. "Then again, it'd really be unfair to Keith. He has no weapon." Seto and Richard couldn't take it anymore and burst out laughing. 

"Grrr. . . Enough!" Keith yelled. "Let's duel!" Keith's deck leader, the Slot Machine, appeared on the field, as did Neo the Magic Swordsman. He drew a card and placed it face down in front of him. A larger card appeared on the field. Then the card moved one space forward. "Your turn brat!" 

Kiera blinked several times, wondering _what_ had just happened. Finding no newly acquired comprehension in blinking, she jumped down from the platform and walked over to Seto. 

"Hey! Seto!" Kiera barked at the aforementioned noble. 

"Something wrong, milady?" he asked. 

"Yes, something is wrong!" she exclaimed. "McMoron never got around to teaching me about the new rules cuz _you showed up and cast him off into oblivion!!!_" 

Seto winced at the anger in her voice. "So you'd like me to tell you the new rules?" 

"Yeah, that's _kinda_ what I was getting at!" she snapped. 

"It's pretty simple, Kiera," Seto began. "It's similar to dueling in your time, except the cards can be moved across the field like pieces on a chess board. The cards can move one space up, down, left, or right, unless it gets a field power bonus. Then it can move two. You know about field power bonuses, right?" Kiera nodded. "Good. And the only way to inflict direct damage to Keith's life points is to attack his deck leader." He was about to leave when he remembered something. "Oh, and you can play your cards any way you like," Seto added. 

"You mean, like I can play a trap in defense mode, then when he attacks, it activates?" Kiera asked. 

"_Exactly_ like that," Seto replied. 

"All right. I'm pretty sure I can get the hang of this thing. . . eventually." Kiera climbed back up onto the platform. She drew a card and placed it in front of her deck leader, then gestured for Keith to go. 

"My turn, brat!" Keith drew his card. Then he put a different card face down next to his deck leader. In defense mode. 

'What the hell is he up to? There's nothing to protect his deck leader from. Probably a trap then. But which one?' Kiera thought about this one long and hard. Keith didn't play many traps in his deck. He was also only in two duels on the show, which meant she hadn't seen all the cards in his deck. There was only one trap that came to mind, Magic Jammer. Meaning that playing a good magic card would be a bad idea. 

"Hey! What are you doing over there?" Keith yelled, getting her attention. 

"It's called 'thinking'. Maybe you should try it sometime." Kiera retorted. Seto and Richard snickered quietly. "All right. I play the magic card Red Medicine." 

"Oh yeah? Well I activate Magic Jammer!" Keith declared as his trap card activated automatically. The Red Medicine card was destroyed and Kiera moved it to her graveyard. "Take that!" 

"Consider it taken," Kiera replied coolly. "You played right into my hands, Keith. I had to play that shit magic card to waste your trap so I could play this! I activate the magic card, Yami!" Kiera flipped the card over and most of the wasteland spaces on her side of the field were turned into dark spaces. 

"What the. . . I'll make you pay for that!" Keith swore. 

" Sure ya will. Any who, I believe it's your turn," Keith drew a card. 

"I summon Pendulum Machine in attack mode! And power it up with Machine Conversion Factory!" Keith yelled, slamming the cards down. The futuristic monster appeared in front of his deck leader, then moved forward two spaces. With the field power bonus and the power up, its attack points were at 2750. Kiera let out a low whistle, then drew a card. She played a card with a power up, then moved the powered-up creature forward one space. 

"Wait. . . What was that?" Keith asked. 

"I recall nothing in the rules saying I had to tell you what my monster is," Kiera answered. "It's your turn." Keith moved his Pendulum Machine another two spaces, to the point where it was on the edge of the lake, then passed to Kiera. She drew a card, and played it face up whilst grinning evilly. "Activate Aqua Chorus!" The already powered up monster received yet another boost. She moved to the space next to Keith's Pendulum Machine, then ended her turn. 

"Well whatever your monster is, my Pendulum Machine can destroy it. Pendulum Machine, attack her face down monster!" 

"Idiot." Kiera muttered under her breath. The face down monster was revealed to be the Water Magician. Adding the field power bonus plus Aqua Chorus and Spring of Rebirth (the power up), it had a grand total of 3000 attack points. And to make matters worse for Keith, the water rusted his machine monster and lowered its attack power to the original 1750. So he was getting bashed for a grand total of 1250 points. 

"Damn it!" Keith yelled as his life points dropped to 2750. Kiera simply smirked, then drew a card. 

"My Water Magician is the least of your worries. For I summon Skull Knight to the field, powered up by Black Pendant!" She played the cards face up on the field. "And with 3650 attack points, there's nothing in your deck that can beat it. Trust me, I know." Keith stared nervously at his deck. 'Does she know something I don't? Maybe she is the one. . . Of course she isn't! Don't be an idiot!' 

"Good luck with that," Kiera snapped. Keith jumped. The Rose Duelist even had comebacks for his _thoughts_. 'Can she read minds?' he thought, sweat dripping down his face. 

"You were talking out loud," Kiera explained, noticing his surprise. "It's your turn, by the way." Keith drew a card and snickered. 

"You're through kid," Keith declared, playing two cards face down. He moved them both forward a space and ended his turn. Kiera drew. She kept her Water Magician in the small lake, since aqua monsters were weak on wasteland. She played a card face down and ended her turn. Keith sniggered evilly. "I play the magic card Wasteland!" Keith yelled flipped the card in front face up. 

Kiera's eyes widened in shock. 'I can't believe he has one of those! He's not as dumb as I thought. . .' The Wasteland magic card turned the entire lake into wasteland, decreasing the power of the Water Magician down to 2000. 

"But that's not all! Now I attack your Water Magician with Slot Machine, powered up with 7 Completed!!" The Slot Machine's attack strength was now at 3200, which was very bad. The Water Magician was annihilated and Kiera's life points were now at 2800. 

"Touché Keith. Touché." Kiera drew and moved her other face down card forward. After a few turns of moving their cards forward, the Slot Machine took its first step into the Dark territory, lowering its points to 2700. 

"Slot Machine! Attack her card now!" Kiera's card was revealed to be the Illusionist Faceless Mage. Its special ability activated, paralyzing the Slot Machine for three turns. Giving Kiera ample time to move her Skull Knight and destroy it, lowering Keith's lifepoints to 1800. The Rose Crusaders were in shock. Never had they seen a person this young duel so methodically. She hadn't lost control of this duel _once_. Whenever Keith took a chunk out of her life points, she'd hit him right back by removing an even larger chunk of his. The Rose Duelist drew and placed a fusion monster face down on the field. Then she passed to Keith. He drew, then laughed manically. 

"This is it kid!" Keith yelled. "I play Barrel Dragon! And its special ability destroys one card on my opponent's side of the field!" Kiera's Skull Knight disintegrated. "But that's not all. Now I play Limiter Removal! That powers up my dragon by 500 points!" But instead of being shocked or surprised, the Rose Duelist smirked. 'He he. My Barrel Dragon will wipe that smirk off your face.' Keith thought, moving the monster forward two spaces. And much to the surprise of everyone, she moved her monster forward. In attack mode. 

"What's she thinking?" Seto muttered. 

"Whatever it is, it better be strong enough to defeat Keith's monster," Richard replied back. 

"You're crazy if you think that any monster of yours can beat my Barrel Dragon!" Keith yelled. "Barrel Dragon, attack her face down card NOW!!" The Barrel Dragon attacked but was annihilated immediately. When the smoke cleared, the Red Eyes Metal Dragon stood triumphant. 

"What . . . is THAT?" Keith yelled. "And how was it able to destroy my Barrel Dragon?" 

"To answer your first question, it's the Red Eyes Metal Dragon. And as for the second one, since it's a machine, it received a power up from Limiter Removal _and_ the Wasteland terrain." Kiera shook her head. "Don'tcha hate when your own advantage comes back to bite ya in the ass?" 

"This is impossible!" Keith yelled, as his life points dropped to 1600. 

"Take solace, for I am about to put you out of your misery. First I play the magic card, Tremendous Fire." The fire struck Keith's deck leader and he lost 1000 life points. "Then I summon Magician of Faith, which allows me to bring back one magic card from my graveyard. So I bash you again and you lose the duel." Keith's cards fell from his hands while his opponent leapt down from the platform. 

"Ow," she muttered, wincing from the shock of her landing. 

"Well done, Kiera," Seto congratulated. 

"Hey! She actually won!" Rex yelled. The other Rose Crusaders murmured. Keith was just sitting there, traumatized by his loss. 

"Hey loser," Bones sneered, kicking Keith. He didn't move an inch. "You don't seem so cocky now, now do ya?" After much taunting from Keith about his lack of dueling skill, Bones was dying to get back at him. This pissed Kiera off to no end. So being the kind and decent person she was, she walked over and smacked Bones upside the head. 

"You of all people have no right to call _anyone_ a loser," the Rose Duelist snapped at him. She shoved the little freak aside and went over to her distressed opponent. "Hey, snap out of it!" she yelled, smacking him also. "You did great. As a friend of mine once said, 'Half the game is getting the cards you need and the other half is knowing how to use them.' I just got really lucky. Really, _really_ lucky. Now why don't you get up and accept defeat like a man?" Keith growled. No little girl was going to tell him how to act like a man. He sprang to his feet and punched Kiera in the face. Everyone was shocked. Seto looked ready to dismember Keith when Kiera started laughing. 

"Now there's the Keith I know and make fun of," she declared. After checking to make sure she still had all her teeth, she walked back over to Richard and Seto. 

"So? How'd I do Richie?" she asked. 

"You did fine," Richard replied. "Now then. I believe this calls for a celebration. What would you think of a feast, milady?" 

"Yay." she mumbled sleepily. Kiera had forgotten to eat breakfast this morning and was starving. The Rose Crusaders cheered upon hearing about a feast, and everyone went back inside to celebrate the Rose Duelist's victory. 

***************************** 

Sorry it took so long to update. I had midterms, and no computer, and then the story got lost, and. . .yeah. Sorry about that. Now then, you must review. Or I will send Kiera after you! And she will mock you relentlessly. 

Oh and another thing. I have two YGO questions that have been nagging me for some time now. 

1) How do you pronounce 'Ryou'? 

-and- 

2) Is Jounichi Joey's last name or first name in Japanese? 

Answer these if you can please! Thank you! ^__^ 


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